Wuzhu
coin issued by Emperor Xuandi

From ChinaWestern Han
dynasty, 73-47 BC

China's most successful
coin

The inscription on this coin reads
'wuzhu', with 'wu' to the right of
the hole, and 'zhu' to the left of the hole.
Wuzhu means
'five grains', and refers to the weight of the coin
(1 wuzhu = 5 grains = 4
grams). By coincidence, the size and weight of the
wuzhu coin was the same
as the Greek drachma and
the Roman
denarius.

Wuzhu
coins were first issued in 118 BC in order to stabilize the Chinese
coinage by replacing
banliang coins, which
had become smaller and lighter during the early Han
dynasty.

It is estimated
that over 28 billion
wuzhu coins were made
during the Western Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 9). As the Han empire
expanded, these coins came to be used further and further afield.
Wuzhu coins have been
found in modern-day Korea, Vietnam and Chinese Central Asia. The
wuzhu was probably the
most successful Chinese coin ever, and continued to be used until
AD 621, when it was replaced by the Kaiyuan
tongbao coin of the Tang dynasty
(618-906).

J. Williams (ed.), Money: a history (London, The British Museum Press, 1997)